Thursday, May 17, 2007

CityWest’s 300 channel universe on the horizon

CityWest is in the process of upgrading its cablevision plant in Prince Rupert, all part of the plan to introduce more television choices for those that remain linked to cablevision over the ever growing satellite options locally.

The city owned cable and Telephone Company is hoping that the introduction of the expanded television lineup will help to reduce the slippage of television viewers who migrate to Star Choice or ExpressVu.

The Daily news previewed some of their plans in Wednesday’s paper.

CityWest set to offer a world of choices
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Wednesday, May 16, 2007

CityWest is getting ready to make use of its new fibre optic cable connection along Highway 16 to bring 300 new channels to its customers.

The company announced yesterday that it has begun an upgrade of its local cable television plant.

Once completed, the new cable plant will mean improved quality of service for current cable television customers, said CityWest. The new plant will also enable CityWest to prepare to launch new services in Prince Rupert such as digital cable television services.

The upgrade project will run at least two months from start to finish.

"We're making customers aware now that there will be some brief interruptions to cable service as our crews are working in their area, but we will work quickly to ensure that the interruption is as brief as possible," said Chad Cunningham, manager of sales and marketing for CityWest.
Once the cable plant upgrade is finished, CityWest will use its fibre-optic line to carry almost 300 TV channels to Prince Rupert, including some high-definition channels.

CityWest expects to have Digital Cable TV available locally by Aug. 1.

"Customers will have an option to either keep the regular cable service they have now, or to upgrade their service to the new digital system," said Cunningham.

Ledcor Technical Services (LTS) spent last summer installing the casing and cable underground along the length of Highway 16 in order to be able to provide residents with state-of-the-art technology. The project was completed last November.

The 150-kilometre fibre link spans some very rough terrain, but now stands as the only fibre link along the Terrace-Prince Rupert corridor.

Owned and operated in Northern B.C., with its head office in Prince Rupert, CityWest serves customers in Prince Rupert, Port Edward, Terrace, Thornhill, Kitimat, Smithers, Telkwa, Houston, Stewart, Kispiox and the Hazeltons.

Formerly known as CityTel, CityWest has been a telephone service provider since 1910. In 2005, CityWest purchased Monarch Cablesystems for $23 million to become a provider of Cable TV and Cable Internet services. In January, CityWest also began offering Internet services in Port Edward.

The new fibre-optic cable linking Prince Rupert to Terrace includes Port Edward, and the line runs into the midst of the community, before connecting with the cable lines.

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